Hands-on with Windows 8.1: A solid update, but not a game changer

Microsoft is betting that Windows 8.1 will be enough to jumpstart stalled sales of new Windows PCs and to coax reluctant Windows 7 users into making the leap. After using Windows 8.1 RTM (essentially the version that will ship with machines when it is officially released) for several days on several different types of machines, I’m impressed by its many subtle improvements over Windows 8 and Windows 8.1 Preview, but it hasn’t addressed any of the fundamental issues slowing Windows 8&#8242;s adoption.

I’ve installed Windows 8.1 Pro RTM on three of my daily-use machines: a laptop and a desktop running Windows 8, and a tablet running Windows 8.1 Preview. All three upgrades went flawlessly, although as promised the upgrade from Preview required re-installing all my applications. Except for small differences, like the return of the neutered Start button — without a Start menu — and a small down arrow on the Start screen pointing to where you can find your applications, there aren’t a lot of visual changes from Windows 8 to Windows 8.1.